DemDaily: The Confirmation Count

DemDaily: The Confirmation Count

March 3, 2017

This week's count!

Former Texas Governor Rick Perry, who advocated abolishing Dept of Energy, is now its Secretary

The CabinetWith the confirmation yesterday of Housing & Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson and Energy Secretary Rick Perry, thirteen of the fifteen Cabinet or Executive Departments heads have now been confirmed, along with five of the seven "Cabinet-level" positions.

In addition to the Cabinet (which also includes the VP and WH Chief of Staff), there are approximately 1200 positions that require Senate confirmation. Of those, 552 are considered "key" appointments (the number has decreased with the Trump Administration's restructuring).

Total Nominated To-Date: 35

In other Cabinet-related news, Attorney General Jeff Sessions has agreed to recuse himself from cases relating to the investigation of connections between Russia and the Trump Campaign/Administration.

The announcement was made yesterday following allegations that he had misled the Senate during his confirmation hearing about meetings he had during the campaign with Russian Ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak.

Citing perjury, Democrats have called for Sessions' resignation, but any future action will likely depend on the larger Russia-Trump investigation and the potential appointment of a Special Prosecutor.

The Confirmation Count

Confirmed by the US Senate

Position

Confirmed

Hearings Completed

Senate Confirmation
Vote Date

Senate Vote Total

Secretary of Homeland Security

John Kelly

January 10

January 20

88 in favor11 against

Secretary of Defense

James Mattis

January 12

January 20

98 in favor1 against (*Gillibrand)

Secretary of Transportation

Elaine Chao

January 11

January 31

93 in favor6 against

Secretary of State

Rex Tillerson

January 11

February 1

56 in favor43 against

Secretary of Education

Betsy DeVos

January 17

February 7

50 in favor (+VP tiebreak)50 against

Attorney General

Jeff Sessions

January 11

February 8

52 in favor47 against

Secretary of Health & Human Services

Tom Price

January 18

February 10

52 in favor48 against

Secretary of the Treasury

Steve Mnuchin

January 19

February 13

53 in favor47 against

Secretary of Veterans Affairs

David Shulkin

February 1

February 13

100 in favor0 against

Secretary of Commerce

Wilbur Ross

January 18

February 27

72 in favor27 against

Secretary of the Interior

Ryan Zinke

January 17

March 1

68 in favor31 against

Secretary of Energy

Rick Perry

January 19

March 2

62 in favor37 against

Secretary of Housing & Urban Development

Ben Carson

January 12

March 2

58 in favor41 against

CIA Director(Cabinet-Level)

Mike Pompeo

January 12

January 23

66 in favor32 against

U.N. Ambassador (Cabinet-Level)

Nikki Haley

January 18

January 24

96 in favor4 against

Small Business Admin (Cabinet-Level)

Linda McMahon

January 24

February 14

81 in favor19 against

Budget Director (Cabinet-Level)

Mick Mulvaney

January 24

February 16

51 in favor49 against

Administrator of the EPA (Cabinet-Level)

Scott Pruitt

February 2

February 17

52 in favor46 against

The Confirmation Process

- Nominee submitted for review by therelevant US Senate Committee.- Senate Committee conducts public Confirmation Hearings.- If majority of Committee approves, the nomination is "voted out" of Committee to a full Senate "floor" vote.- Full Senate Vote: A simple majority (51)required to confirm. If vote is 50-50, the Vice President casts the tie-breaking vote. Remaining Nominees: Awaiting Committee Hearing